In order to foster the linen and
woolen industry, he decreed that his subjects should wear none of the
fashionable chintz and calico, and threatened with a hundred thalers'
fine and three days in the pillory everybody who, after eight months,
permitted a shred of calico in his house in dress, gown, cap, or
furniture coverings. This method of ruling certainly seemed severe and
petty; but the son learned to honor nevertheless the prudent mind and
good intentions which were recognizable underneath such edicts, and
himself gradually acquired a wealth of detailed knowledge such as is
not usually at the disposal of a prince--real estate values, market
prices, and the needs of the people; the usages, rights, and duties of
humble life. He even absorbed something of the pride with which the
King boasted of his business knowledge; and when he himself had become
the all-powerful administrator of his State, the unbounded advantage
which was due to his knowledge of the people and of trade became
manifest. Only in this way was the wise economy made possible with
which he managed his own household and the State finances, as well as
the unceasing care for detail by which he developed agriculture,
trade, prosperity, and culture among his people. He could examine
equally well the daily accounts of his cooks and the estimates of the
income from the domains, forests, and taxes. For his ability to judge
with precision the smallest things as well as the greatest, his people
were in great part indebted to the years during which he had sat
unwillingly as assessor at the green table at Ruppin.
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